Dollars and Diamonds

Yesterday I was pumping gas and looked down to see a diamond earring laying on the ground. I bent down and picked it up. It was least a caret and 1/2 and beautifully set. I am no jeweler...but it looked real to me. I starred at it and instantly thought about when Emily P lost her wedding rings after taking them off in an airplane bathroom to put lotion on. Some ahole didn't turn her rings in. With the memory of what happened to Em running thru my head...I went straight into the gas station and turned in the earring to the GED hopeful behind the counter. I told him where I found it...and told him that it probably means a lot to someone and they will probably come looking for it. He grunted at me and said, "you think it's real?" And I said, "I don't know, I couldn't imagine keeping it, it's not mine. And like I said, it could be really important to someone." I know I know... he probably put the earring straight into his pocket and made a B-line to the nearest pawn shop...but it's his karma.... not mine.

I will tell this story because no one who reads my blog knows this friend of mine. And... I won't entertain guesses from the peanut gallery. OK. The other day I was catching up with an old friend who I rarely see or talk to anymore. She has had a really tough 2005. A group of us were out having some cocktails and she looks at us and says, "I am really fucked on my taxes this year, I lost $84,000 gambling last year." WHAT? Uh...yea. She actually thinks she lost more than $84K...but that amount she has receipts and credit card advances for. YIKES! She had won $60,000 and got a 1099 tax form for $60,000. But...she had put every dime of that 60K BACK INTO THE CASINO. So there she sits, $84,000 in the hole....and still having to pay taxes on another $60,000. I feel horrible for her for this self-inflicted nightmare...and feel helpless on how to help her.